I recently ran across this quote.
You can never “out-hate” the haters. You can never “out-divide” the dividers… Let’s play our game – not theirs.
What do you think?
The quote came from a commencement address by political commentator Van Jones. I edited it because I don’t do politics – at least not here!
I think I agree with him, with one exception:
It’s not a game!
A good deal of the misery in our society stems from the belief that life is a game with a scoreboard. And whenever there’s a scoreboard, there must be winners, and there must be losers. If you think honestly, much of what you’ve learned has been about becoming a winner, and making sure you aren’t a loser.
Sadly, many folks even view God this way. They believe he has some sort of cosmic scoreboard – when the clock runs out, the winners get to go to heaven, the losers… don’t.
Jesus did not step into the world to create some sort of better game with a better class of winners. He came to demolish the scoreboard altogether. No winners. No losers.
You all know I think a lot about the kids at the Home of Hope. In their former life, they were the epic example of losers in life’s cruel game. We couldn’t blame them for wanting to turn the tables, for seeking to become winners at this game.
My hope for them is that their restoration is so complete, that they know Jesus so completely, that they don’t feel the need to win. I hope they understand there’s no need to compete.
I hope they experience a kingdom in which service and servant leadership are the ultimate values.
Same goes for you and me.